Chapter Twenty-Eight
Charlotte
The long drive to start our college careers had taken Ben and I two full days in the packed U-Haul. Both our families had piled into vehicles to make the 12-hour trek, with truck loaded down with all my stuff and Ben's as well.
My mom drove with Dani the truck that towed my car, because we weren't sure Smurfie would survive a twelve hour trip. Ben's dad drove the other with Alex. Ollie drove my mom's minivan with Layla and Declan, and Henry drove the Thomases' SUV with Lizzie, so Dani didn't have to. Ben and I were in his car.
Ben tried to insist that he would do all the driving, but I made him take turns with me so he could sleep on the way.
Now here we were at last. Butterflies swirled in my stomach as Ben and I stood in front of the dorm, suitcases in hand. "Ready?" he asked, squeezing my hand gently. I took a deep breath, taking in the new scene around me.
"Okay, now I'm ready." With that, Ben and I each grabbed a suitcase and rolled them inside to start this new chapter.
We found my dorm, and there was already a whiteboard with the names, "Lou, Lena, Lola, and Lemma" written on it. Lena was obviously Elena, because she had told me her dad pulled strings so we could room together. I assumed I was Lola, because it was a possible nickname for my name, though I didn't know why it was written on there.
I huffed under the weight of my bags as I opened the door. The second I set my bags down, I was greeted by someone embracing me in a tight hug.
"I swear to God, if you're not Lena, I'll punch you in the throat," I warned, out of breath.
"It's me," she laughed, pulling back with a smile. Her familiar hazel eyes put me at ease. We'd been through so much together over the past months, and I was glad to have her by my side.
"Hi, Ben," she smiled at Ben, who had carried in an amount of stuff that put the bags I brought in to shame.
"Hey, El," Ben nodded. "Which room?" Elena pointed to one of the doors, and Ben headed that way with my things.
"Who the hell is that fine piece of man?" A tall girl with dyed black hair and piercing green eyes asked with a mischievous grin.
"My boyfriend," I answered shortly, crossing my arms over my chest. Even though I trusted Ben completely and knew he would never stray, I couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealousy when other girls openly admired him.
"More like her husband," Elena teased, giving my shoulder a playful shove.
"Lucky girl," the girl noted. "I'm Louise. Or Lou. Or Louie. Whatever you prefer."
"Charlotte," I replied.
"Lola!" she exclaimed.
"No one's ever called me that before," I admitted.
"Well, get used to it," she grinned.
"Is the other girl here yet?" I asked as I began walking around the common room. "Is her name really Lemma?"
"She's not here yet," Elena said.
"Her name's Emma, but we're calling her Lemma so we all have 'L' names," Louise explained. "Your hair is fucking wicked, Lola."
"Uh, thanks, I guess," I mumbled, self-consciously twirling a red curl between my fingers.
"I got stuck with white blonde hair," she continued. "Made me look like the palest person on the fucking planet, so I've been dying it black since I was 12."
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Teen Fiction[BOOK 2 OF FEARLESS] *mature content* "Why are you sugaring me up?" he asked with a raised brow. "I'm your sugar mommy," she teased. "Minus giving you money. I'm broke as hell." "Do you need money? I can give you some," he offered. She shook her hea...
